


Stiles finds a mate.

by invisible_nerd_girl



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Crazy Peter, Evil Argents are Evil, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Humans, Hunters, Hurt Stiles, M/M, Mer-sharks, Mpreg, Peter is still an Alpha
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2018-10-24
Packaged: 2019-07-15 00:38:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 23,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16051856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/invisible_nerd_girl/pseuds/invisible_nerd_girl
Summary: Stiles is a merperson that is separated from his pod, and he's not doing well. Things turn for the worse when a fully shifted Mer-shark attacks him.(I put Graphic description because there's going to be a lot of Stiles healing from his wounds and little about loosing his mother to hunters.)





	1. SHARKS!

Stiles swam forward steadily, following where the current was taking him despite the fact that he was off course. He was from warm waters, but he was deeper then he ever been, not knowing that there was a current to drag him under. His father had tried to teach him where to go but they hadn’t reached the lessons about the far reaches of their territory only meant to be after he learned to defend himself against hunters better. Now it was almost a whole moon since he saw his father, completely lost on how to get back to the pods territory. The current tugging him back before he could see the stars and his exhaustion from lack of food draining his mind. 

“Now what?” He muttered, twisting around to look at the sunlight filtering through the water, duller then he’s ever seen it. He didn’t know the way home and his main defense was to hit hard and swim for cover as he still had yet to shed his pre-adult scales to his final stage of adulthood. 

A scent drifted to his nose and a thrill of fear traveled down his spine. He spun around, trying to place where it was coming from, flaring his fins out as far as possible but the trace was gone. It was open waters all around him and panic set in. Sending out a loud chirp, he listened close until he heard it echo back at him, leading him to shallower waters and hopefully a place to hide. It was becoming too cold for him to travel comfortably, all the fish he knew how to catch behind him. 

The scent came back tenfold, and he rolled desperately to the side as he caught sight of a massive, black shark rocketing toward him from below. It was only a glance and he would’ve never seen it if he hadn’t already been looking. It was too large for words. It wasn’t a great white or a natural shark of any sort. It was like him, a merperson, but unlike him it was a beast. An Alpha shark with red eyes that glinted as he lunged sideways, still trying to grab ahold on Stiles with his teeth, his fins no longer hands. 

The mer took no time racing away, careening wildly downward despite the chill. He had to escape. He flared out his fins to catch as much water to fill his body with oxygen before flattening everything, turning his body into a streamline. His mind fluttered as he made vital decisions on a seconds notice, dodging out of the way of the Alpha sharks newest charge. He let out a series of frantic chirps and realized there was a small cave just ahead of him. 

Stiles shot toward it, only to duck away at the last minute. The Alpha shark anticipated his move, ending up ramming into the rock above the cave with all the force of his charge as he tried to block the entrance. The rocks crumbled under the dazed Alpha shark and they both weren’t fast enough to get clear. He clamped his jaw shut to silence his scream when his tail was pinned to the base of the cave, begging that the beast wouldn’t realize that he had an easy meal. 

The Alpha shark swam a few feet away, shaking his head as if he were confused on what just happened and why he wasn’t munching on a tasty tropical mer. Stiles glanced back to judge if he could free himself and let out a whine at seeing a thread of red drifting around his tail end. He clawed at the edge of the rock, filling the water with more red when the sharp corners dug into his pads and he heaved. A crack made him glance up just in time for a sharp fragment to graze his neck, scraping at his gills and making him gag as he tasted his blood. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the mass of black become a dot, steadily getting larger as it charged again. Adrenaline flooded through him and he ripped his tail free with a heave, clawing until he was swimming along the bottom of the rock. 

Ahead of him was a small kelp forest, just large enough to make it difficult for the shark to find him if he played it right. Stiles glanced behind him before shoving off the rock, gasping through the dribbles of blood from his gills and whipped his tail twice as hard since part of it was shredded. He glanced over his shoulder to see the black beast getting ever larger, the menacing grin on its face making him hysterical. He clawed his way into the kelp when he reached it, curling around it as it swayed, seeing the minimal currents as he dove to the deepest part. 

After he buried himself into the soft sand at the floor of the forest, he listened for the silent killer and sniffed weakly. Then he heard it. The creature was having trouble on the far side of the forest, thinking that Stiles had tried to deceive it by turning off. He honestly hadn’t thought that far but he wasn’t going to let his chance to escape pass him by because he scoffed at a shark overthinking his panic. He unburied himself, coughing weakly as sand filtered through his gills and into his stomach before he swam wildly opposite of the beast.

And right into the arms of another shark, a more mer looking one with clear hazel eyes and massive eyebrows. Stiles screaked as he was caught, trashing around with his tail in a weakening attempt to free himself. He was loosing to much blood. He fell limp, letting his head fall to one side. Oddly, it gave him a clear view of the shocked shark, his eyes wide and suddenly unseeing. He watched in amazement as the sharks eyes flickered from hazel to blue, the pupils dilating as the creature sniffed deeply at the blood swirling around him. 

Not one to go down without a fight, and also not one to be above feeling a little cheated that a monster had better looks than him, he took a chance. Stiles lunged forward and nipped the shark on his jaw, drawing tiny pinpricks of blood that he immediately spat out. The arms around him dropped instantly from shock and he slashed with his claws when he shoved off. He was nearer to the shore and he saw a very small cave. 

Stiles yipped as his shoulders scraped along the hole, wiggling frantically until he slid it, tucking into a tight ball near that back as the new shark peered in, his eyes wide and back to hazel. His lips moved but Stiles sagged to the bottom of the cave, still out of reach from the creature as he stuck a hand in. His shoulders were too large to allow him in and he swatted in Stiles direction. He took the moment to ignore the beast, instead focusing on what he was feeling.

He hurt. By the stars, he hurt. His gills were filled with blood and clotted sand, the water flow wasn’t enough as his heart pounded from the chase. His head was spinning from the loss of blood and darkness was already clouding the edges of his vision. The worse part was his tail. He couldn’t live on his own with such a wound. He didn’t have his pod to protect him, nor did he have a way home and he hadn’t eaten in a several days. 

He was going to die. Stiles felt the revelation in his soul, but he knew he couldn’t out swim both sharks or any other that came across him if he did. The scent of blood gave all too much away and he was too weak to even shift his tail into a more comfortable position. He was going to die, but he didn’t want to suffer. 

His attention was taken by the Shark, who suddenly grumbled and managed to stretch a little farther, his fingers just running through Stiles hair but not enough to do anything. He looked at the massive claws, at least double the size of his own and the sharp scales that ran from his wrist up to disappear behind his shoulders in black and silver. He met the creatures eyes and saw a frantic look as he glanced over his shoulder. He probably didn’t want to share with the Alpha shark. 

Stiles bowed his head and accepted his fate. He lifted his hand hesitantly, making the shark fall still and watch him. He closed his eyes, taking a shuttering gulp through his gills, praying that the shark was kind, that his death would be quick as he placed his hand in the rough palm of the shark. After a few heartbeats he peeked one eye open, half expecting to find that the lack of activity was because the Alpha came by and ate everything but the sharks arm but he met wide hazel eyes with eyebrows raised. 

He lifted his own in a general question and he was suddenly yanked from the cave. The warm arms circled around him again and he buried his face in the sharks chest, unused to the feeling of swimming side to side instead of up and down and completely spooked that he wasn’t dead yet. He barely had a moment to think it over, the shock draining what was left of his strength and he fell into the darkness.


	2. The first Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles wakes up beached with the shark taking care of his wounds.

Stiles woke slowly. He was in warm waters again, his eyes tinged red from his lids as the sun beat down on them. He shifted slightly at the soft and wet something passed over his gills again and again, cleaning the grit out of them even though he was breathing air with his mouth. He hissed, throwing his head to the side to get it to stop. Claws dug into his scalp to hold him still accompanied by an answering growl, his cheek brushing against beard bristles. He froze as the tongue scraped over his wound again and he hummed his discontent, unable to move. 

He slowly became aware of his other wounds. His tail was bound in something and he gave a small flick, a twitch of muscles really, only to feel the sharks tail stretched out on the beach beside him. Everything ached and he clacked his teeth in pain, coughing as his gills were finally clean. He pressed against the claws holding him still, trying to stretch out a little more to give him better access. The shark sniffed at the wound before giving it a final lap, turning his head to the others side as he snuffled at the gills there. Stiles tilted his head to the side, so he could see easier, gasping slightly when they received a few brisk strokes and he was gently lowered back to the sand. 

His heart pounded in his chest as the shark towered over him. His hair was black like his scales, his skin darker than Stiles and he was looking down at him. The shark was larger than him. He couldn’t help the frightened click that came from him and he curled in on himself with his face heating up in embarrassment. How could he have such conflicting thoughts? He should be frightened that he was still alive, terrified even as he was with the shark, but all he felt was a lightness in his head. He never had anyone take care of him in such a way. It didn’t help that a second later he realized the shark let a laugh slip out. 

Stiles stared in shock, watching the minute changes, the press of his lips tighter to hide the smile that still escaped through a quirk, the way his eyes practically glowed and his eyebrows twitched upwards before he turned out of view. The small dorsal fin on his lower half wobbled slightly even after he stopped moving and Stiles shoved himself up, ready for anything, except pain.

The scrapes in his hands ground against the sand and he hissed, snatching them to close to his body and falling forward. The shark caught him in his surprisingly warm arms, his face blank as he held him up. Stiles hissed as his hands were pried from his side, the shark keeping his claws from scratching him as he lifted them up. He saw a flash of guilt on his face before he shifted around and making his way back to the water. Stiles shied away despite the fact that he was drying out and his skin was starting to burn under the sun. He didn’t want to see the Alpha waiting for him. 

The shark let out a soft trill, catching his attention and dragging it away from the wave lapping on the beach. He was already in and reaching out for him to take his hand. For a moment, Stiles flashed back to the little cave but this time he held his hands to his chest and shook his head venomously. The shark narrowed his eyes and Stiles flicked his side fins around in fright but their eyes were locked. He panted in the sun and the sharks attention flickered to a bunch of humans who had gathered around them. Stiles gaped at them, shuffling closer to the shark and the water as he eyed them. 

The next thing he knew there was an arm around his waist, pulling him against the sharks chest and pinning him them back to chest. One wrist was caught in a tight grip and he clacked his teeth in warning. The shark nipped at his sensitive fins on the back of his neck as he dunked the hand in a wave. More humans surrounded them as the shark cleaned his other hand and lifted them up for inspection. He twisted Stiles around so he was sitting across his lap, his tail floating in the cool salty water. 

Stiles knew humans knew about them, that they studied them but they learned the hard way to leave all mer creatures and anything else alone, but they still took mer. There were some that hunted mer and Stiles chose to hide away after they took his mother. It nearly killed his father to loose his mate but Melissa assured him it was Stiles that pulled him back. If he got to close, the hunters would take him and his father could die of a broken heart. 

The shark started to lick the wounds on his hands, one deep enough that it tinged the tongue red between his razor-sharp teeth but he couldn’t care less how terrifying it was. The humans were getting closer and he tucked himself closer to the shark, wrapping his tail around his torso so the larger mass hid his wound, trilling in distress as one got to close, their voices grating on his senses. The shark held him calmly, one hand trapping both his wrists as he lapped at his wounds and the other around his waist to hold him steady. A splash a few feet away made him flinch, jerking in the sharks grasp and a tooth caught his hand, drawing blood. 

Then he was flipped on his back in the water with the sharks weight over him. Stiles clung to his massive shoulders with a frightened chitter, his face buried in his chest, trying to hold his head clear of the small waves just on hitting his shoulders in case his gills weren’t ready. A low warning hum came from the beast above him, jerking his attention back to him. He could feel the claws digging into the sand on either side of his shoulders and the humans scrambled back. 

He stared in amazement at the bright, reflective blue eyes and bared white teeth. His bones cracked as he got larger, a new, larger dorsal fin growing out between his shoulders and the scales multiplied across his body, clipping at Stiles skin as they appeared, making him realize they weren’t really scales he was used to. The weight along his body grew and he clung tighter as it pinched his wounded tail but he couldn’t find it in him to put a stop to it when the humans scurried away faster. Only when they were at a comfortable distance did he act.

Stiles pulled himself up and nibbled at the sharks neck and chin to get his attention, carefully holding himself up as the scales caught at his own, more dried out scales making a few fall off from his wrists. The creature snapped at him in warning, but a single human started to approach again and he pulled back. The blue faded from his eyes as he looped an arm around his waist, tugging him into deeper waters. 

Their heads went under and he took in as much water as he could through his gills, trying to clean off the feeling of the sharks tongue. He could still feel it scraping along his neck and he closed his eyes, breathing deep. The salt stung his wounds and he could barely move his tail around, so he held on, letting the shark do what he wanted. He knew the creature wouldn’t hurt him and went as far as scaring off the humans when he got antsy. It was better than being dead and eaten by the Alpha. If not confusing.

He watched the water flow over the sharks scales and his large dorsal fin receded back into his skin with the faint sound of crunching, He reached up and ran a hand along his back, trying to figure out how the shark did it. The creature bucked in surprise and drop him. Stiles lost his grip and started drifting downward, unable to hold himself in one spot. He pouted up at the creature as he swam down, catching him around the waist once again before rolling him with a flick of the wrist. Stiles clicked his teeth as he floated up and the shark grabbed his arms, moving so Stiles was over him with his arms were wrapped around his neck. 

He gave a disgruntled chirp and received a glare in return, making him duck his head so his cheek was pressed against a strange spiral marking on his back and pouted back at him. The shark quickly faced forward again, making him snort at the faint pinkness spreading across his strangely rounded ears. There was a row of scales running along the outer part, circling down to the lobe and continued to his neck. Stiles lost sight of them as they became fainter, the shark calming down a little more until it was just the cusp of his ear. 

Stiles was paying so much attention to the little details of the scales that he didn’t realize that they had stopped. He pulled himself along the sharks back and peeked over his shoulder. They were in a large cave, an empty cave. Something made him recoil from it, like it wasn’t meant to be like this. It was too large to have just one shark, just one living being when it was perfect for a larger group. He pressed closer with a thrill as the shark carried him upward. 

They were still near the shore, so they broke the surface to a little patch of sand and sun. Stiles barely had time to take it in before he was promptly dumped onto the sand, his tail being lifted after him and placed a little more gently. It burned after the chill of the water. He clicked at him angerly, but the shark was already gone. He slumped to the sand, using his arms as a pillow and carefully kept his palms from getting the sand in the wound. A sharp pain came from the hand that the shark grazed and he pulled it closer to him, sniffing at the tiny tooth that was sticking out of it. 

“Whoa.” He slowly tugged it out of his hand, lapping at the blood that followed but his attention was focused on the tooth. He didn’t even realize that it was there the entire swim back, being too careful so he didn’t agitate his wounds on the sharks tail. He looked around frantically, his tongue still pressed against the tear and his eyes landed on a small crack in the rock. He slipped the tooth in and settled down. 

A few heartbeats later he lifted his head and peered into the water, hissing when he realized the shark was far gone. He gazed around at the spot he was placed in, sniffing at the sand that obviously wasn’t there naturally. The rock face around him was rough and while there was sand on the floor of the cave, he could see the little waves splashing up and sweeping a few grains of sand back down. The shark must have hauled it up to the ledge, just at the waters edge. He dug down a little and huffed when he found that it went deep. 

Stiles carefully rolled over, stretching out his fins and faced the sun. There was a roof over the cave, the sound of water washing over everything soothing him as he looked out the hole. He laughed weakly as it warmed his face and he flung an arm over his eyes. A small whine escaped him but he held the others in. 

He missed his father, his pod. He needed to get home. Everything had been taken from him, he was hurt and all he wanted to do was curl up and not move. He thrashed around, the image of the Alpha shark glued to the back of his eyes and he flung his arm away so he could open them. Anger rolled through him that he had been hunted by the beast, that he was being held captive by another and he dragged himself to a sitting position. 

His tail was a mess. There was no other way to put it now that he was looking at it fully. There was scrapes that started at his hips and ran down, steadily getting deeper the further they got until they disappeared into the wrap around the very end of his tail. He shuttered as he leaned forward, running his hands along the sides of the tears, scales falling off and sticking to them, but it didn’t bleed too much. He was missing membrane from some of his fins that lines his tail, one on his hip was missing entirely. The shark had managed to wrap the worse of it at the very ends with kelp, tied off in a neat knot that held everything still. 

He slumped to the sand, breathing roughly as the pain really hit him. The shark wasn’t there to flood his mind with fight or flight and the wounds slowly sank in. He could feel every little tear and rip. The scent of his blood making him nauseous, but he moved out of the sun, sinking into the cool sand in attempt to keep himself from burning more. He needed to go through and clean off all the dull, dried scales and clean them off around the wounds so they wouldn’t get in the way of healing. 

On top of everything, his stomach started to remind him that he hadn’t eaten. He tucked himself into a corner, the rock digging into his side but he didn’t care. He flared out his fins in warning when he heard a splash, the sharks head popping over the edge of the resting spot, a large fish hanging from his mouth. He glared at Stiles, snapping his jaws shut so there was a sizable bite out of the backbone and it fell into his hand. Stiles squeaked and pressed himself flat on the sand, tucking his fins down but he couldn’t take his eyes off the fish. 

The shark snorted at him, grabbing the fish and tossing it to him. He swallowed thickly before snatching it up, ripping into it with his teeth and moaning as flavor washed over his tongue. It was gone in a few bites except the head and he lapped at his fingers until they were clean and he tasted his own blood again, instantly making him gag. He clamped his hand over his mouth in attempt to keep everything in but it was useless. His stomach couldn’t handle so much food so fast after being completely empty for so long. 

The shark scrambled forward as Stiles thrashed. He grabbed the edge of the hole in the rock and stuck his head out a heartbeat before he lost the fish. He whined low between heaves, trembling as he lost the entire contents of his stomach and what felt like several mouthfuls of bile. The shark held him up when his arms gave out and rubbed at the fin along his back to sooth him. He curled in on himself when it finally stopped, letting the shark take the weight. 

“Sorry.” He whispered, sinking into the sand and closing his eyes. He felt the arms around him stiffen before lifting him up and slipping him into the water. Stiles opened his eyes as the shark hauled his tail to the edge and dropped in next to him. They sank lower, the shark tugged him to a nook of the cave nudging him around until he was safely tucked away. He pouted at the creature as he wedged himself against the rock with his tail blocking Stiles from crawling away due to his useless tail. 

“Go to sleep” the shark suddenly spoke and he chittered in shock, dropping his head in embarrassment when hazel eyes peeked at him over his shoulder. 

“You could talk this whole time?” Stiles hissed, snapping his teeth in his frustration. 

“I wasn’t aware you’d understand.” The shark tilted his head to the side like Stiles was the ignorant one. 

“I’ve been separated from my pod for almost a moon, have not eaten in days, was chased by a massive black Alpha shark with red eyes and nearly had my tail ripped off in my escape. I thought I was going to die a slow death from not having a working tail and thought you were going to kill me and be done with it.” Stiles ranted, spinning around and burying himself in the sand despite his pain. “I couldn’t call to my family to me and I don’t even know how to get back home. Why would I know that you could speak Mer and not just Shark?”

“You thought I was going to kill you” Stiles shrank in on himself. The shark sounded confused and he clicked nervously. “But you took my hand.”

“I thought you looked nice. That you would make it quick.” He flicked his stump of a tail over his head to show that he was done talking, though he could still scent the confusion rolling off the shark in waves. Sleep took him fast, dulling the pain of his body and his heart.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think.


	3. Hurting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter. Stiles realized how bad he's hurt.

When he woke, he felt a little better. He could feel his heartbeat pounding in his wounds and in his spinning head. He gasped at the bitter taste still in his mouth from the fish incident and he sucked in a good deal of water, swishing it in his mouth before spitting it out. He flushed his gills next, spreading his fins as he did and then he remembered the shark. 

The creature was propped up near him, facing him with a smaller fish in his teeth and his fingers digging into the sand. He looked at him in shock, his eyes flickering with blue and his nostrils flaring. Stiles felt his stomach lurch in a way that just wasn’t hunger and he trilled nervously, tucking his fins away so his scent stopped swirling out through the water. 

“I never did get to say thank you for helping me” He spoke low, the movement making his neck ache. He filtered some water through, grateful that it didn’t taste of blood this time and he inched closer to the shark. “My name’s Stiles.” 

“Derek” The broke the shark out of whatever it was that took his mind and let the fish floated meekly in the current. He grabbed it and ripped the head off, holding the rest to Stiles. “Something smaller and blander should be better this time.” 

“Thank you.” Stiles took it, still hesitating for a second before rocking backward. He wiggled his shoulders into the sand and held the fish in both hands, forcing himself to take tiny bites when he just wanted to jam the entire thing in his mouth and savor the crunch. Derek popped the head in his mouth and he raised his eyebrow at him, wrinkling his nose in disgust. 

“It’s good!” the shark turned away with a faint blush, but he could scent the contentness that he was actually feeling. Stiles chirped happily as he finished, letting the fins drift out in the current again before he looked at his hands. “Sorry about grazing you before”

“It’s not your fault. I flinched,” He did just that when the shark swam to his side, holding his hand out with a glare. Stiles stared back just as strong before giving up and letting his hands be examined. Derek sniffed at them, turning them over carefully as he lifted them closer to his face. He lifted his eyebrows in question and he nodded, twitching as the tongue scraped them clean. He focused on the hands holding his and not the way the shark carefully nuzzled his face into his palm, glancing up with his bright hazel eyes. 

Derek reached back and pulled a strand of kelp out from a small pile he had amassed while he slept, gently wrapping his hands up. Stiles marveled at the difference in their hands. His were pale, scales circling the wrists with the bleached tint that they acquired. Not like the golden caramel that he was used to. Hunters really liked his coloring. Dereks hands were larger, his fingers shorter and broader then his own. His claws were larger, those of a stronger predator, silver scales on his wrists caught the light as he moved them.

The shark gave a soft grunt, running his hands over the small fins on Stiles arms. They were a little torn but there was nothing that could be done. He nudged his arms up as he looked over his chest and sides, his hands gently flipping him until they landed on the fins on his hips. Stiles bit his lip as his eyes flickered from the missing fin and its battered pair on the other side. 

“It’s not vital.” He soothed but the shark shook his head, sliding under him and shoving him up. He gave several confused clicks as he was gently spun, a longer strand of kelp wrapping around his waist and tied off. He was suddenly grateful that it was the wound that he didn’t lick clean. Stiles didn’t think his heart could handle it. He started to calm as he drifted back toward his sleeping spot when an arm looped around his stomach and held him still. 

“Your…” Derek stuttered and he glanced over his shoulder, gapping at the wounds along the back of his tail that he didn’t see the day before. It looked like the front, except instead of a few tears running down his side, there was a few stripes of scales running up. Everything else was torn. They weren’t too deep but there were no scales to speak of and no way they were growing back soon.

“I think I need to lay down” He held onto the arm under him as he was lowered to the sand. He picked at the bleached scales but they burned under his hand and he curled in on himself. He could feel the wound tugging at his skin when he moved, barely healed but not bleeding. 

“I can get some more fish” Derek brushed a hand through his hair before he shot out of the cave. Stiles watched as his tail flicked side to side and he held in a sudden snicker. He could see how the shark’s body was more streamlined then his own. Stiles had extra fins to be flashy, to attract a mate, which was something he was never good at. His species didn’t have natural predators other than Alpha sharks or other sharks. Pods helped keep them away, but now he was without his pod and living with a shark. A shark named Derek that he was starting to like. He knew he had a skill of being odd, but this was almost too much.

“Maybe a small nap.” He muttered to himself and started to pick at the scales again. His mind was restless, and his fingers twitched. He propped himself up on his elbows and looked around. The small ledge just above his head and he wiggled, swaying his hands through the water as he tried to get up to it without putting strain on his tail. The wounds on his palms ached but he used what little he could to make it up. He sniffed at them for a moment as he braced himself against the rocks at the bottom.

He was shooting for the ledge but his tail wasn’t having it. He whistled sadly as he sunk back to the floor and the current shoved him around. His fingers were tired, but he dug them into the sand and dragged himself back into the spot where the current couldn’t reach him. He didn’t have anyone to make sure he would stay safe while sleeping but he settled down anyway, feeling exhausted. 

A soft hum came from the entrance and he lifted his head, the shark swimming in with another small fish. His fins fluttered around him excitedly as he ripped the head off, munching through the neck with his teeth before passing it off to Derek. The shark took it with a shy hand, like he was about to flinch away again but he held firm, showing that he was getting used to the creatures help. Stiles didn’t hesitate this time, sniffing briefly at the fish before he took a bite, trying to make things easier. 

“Thanks” he muttered around the fish. He didn’t have to pace himself this time, his stomach feeling stronger than before. Full and warm, he closed his eyes and started to doze. The current picked him up and made him drift around without the pod to hold onto or a tail to wrap around something. Warmth encircled him and he fell into a deeper sleep, clinging to the body next to him. He didn’t know sharks could be so warm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just a short chapter because I have a massive paper due.


	4. Stiles gets bored

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They see the Alpha again and then spend the day together.

He woke as the sun was setting with hands moving over the very end of his tail. He held still as the kelp was unwound, feeling the shark lean forward and sniff at him. It hurt when the fin was moved about and gave a high pitch cry of pain, nearly blacking out as it was wrapped back up. Arms came around him and pulled him up until their heads broke out of the water. 

“No infection” Derek growled as he tugged him to the sandy ledge and grabbed it. Stiles held on as he was lifted up and set onto the still warm sand and sniffed at the strange scents coming off the shark. Derek grabbed his neck and dragged him until their faces were an inch apart, the shark sniffing as his eyes snapped back and forth between his own eyes. 

“I’m fine” Stiles breathed out and the shark snorted, pulling back. He nodded to the corner with a huff and splashed him as he swam away. He stared after the creature in a daze, wondering what he did wrong to make the shark react in the way that he did. A ripple made him flick the fins attached to his ear and he glanced toward where the shark had nodded. 

“Fish?” He brightened and rolled, finding it easier then dragging his tail behind him and risk ripping his binds off. There was a small bowl in the rock, filled with water. As he watched, a small fish, like all the others, flicked into view and then back down to the bottom. He was memorized by the ripples left by the fish before he darted a hand out and made more, laughing as it fell still. Peering in, he saw a few more flashes and he snatched up one as it came to close to the surface. 

He rubbed at the scales on his hip, trying to get them to fall off but they still weren’t ready. It was itchy and he flicked his back fin down as he scraped a shoulder on one of the rocks. He ate all but the head, setting it off on the side for the shark when he got back. He couldn’t do much to hold up his end of the hunting, or to make it up to the shark for helping him but he could have something to give the shark. He picked up another fish and closed his eyes as he ate, dropping the second head next to the first. Rolling over, he gazed out the hole at the growing night, watching as the moon rose and the stars started to appear. His mind settled when he recognized some of the stars, giving him a direction to head once he could swim properly. He drew an arrow in the sand pointed him in the right way and let out a mournful whine. He wanted his pod, but part of him didn’t want to leave the shark. 

He felt his skin start to dry out again, pulling at his wounds and he rolled back into the water. He held onto the edge of the ledge and dunked his head down, washing his gills with a gleeful sigh. It could be worse. He had someone taking care of him. Once he was properly soaked he tried and failed to pull himself back onto the ledge. 

A warning clack of teeth reached him and he glanced down to see blue, making him snap in shock. The shark slid under him and threw him into the ledge, following him quickly and held him still. Stiles nipped at the arms holding him but stilled as he noticed that the shark wasn’t himself. Blue eyes that flickered over him, to many teeth bared and his nose flaring. The dorsal fin was back on his shoulders and his fingers webbed. 

Stiles chittered and started to nuzzle at his neck, running his nose soothingly along his roughened chin. He trilled when the body relaxed above him but only the eyes changed back. Derek stiffened and Stiles sat up the follow what he was watching, grabbing onto the shoulders when he saw it. 

A massive black dorsal fin in the water between them and the shore. The shark above him gave off the scent of fear and adrenaline, his breaths coming fast now that he was out of the water, his face pressing against his neck as he panted. 

“Did he try…?” He reached around and petted anything he could get his hands on, trying to sooth the shark back to his usual self. Derek flattened himself over him, pressing him into the sand like he could hide him. Stiles nipped at him and snapped his jaw. “Here” He grabbed the fish heads and held them out between them in hope to distract them from the killer. 

Derek stared at the head blankly before a faint warbling trill coming from him and he took them, rolling off of him so he could pop on in his mouth. Everything shifted back to normal and Stiles hummed to show his appreciation. His instincts were telling him to get away from both predators but he knew the grumpy shark wouldn’t hurt him, his growing affection to the creatures gentle hands and barely expressive face.

Stiles stretched out on his side and shuffled closer to the shark, dropping his head down. He wiggled forward on his stomach, pausing when the shark moved to eat the last fish head. After a few seconds, he shifted the rest of the way until they were shoulder to hip, touching softly and he let his head fall on his arms. The shark hesitated, sinking forward next to him and wrapping an arm gently around his back. 

They dozed until morning. Derek made him eat the last of the fish but Stiles handed him each of the heads with growing glee. He couldn’t get the scent of the shark out of his mind, the way he brightened when Stiles held them out to him. He spent so long without a pod that he was touch starved, taking any chance the shark wasn’t paying much attention to move closer. He was pretty sure the shark held him still while sleeping. 

But now he was bored. Stiles flicked his fins around and peered into the water before leaning over and dunking just his head under. He sniffed for the Alpha shark but they waters appeared clear, making him click in excitement and tried to slip the rest of the way in. 

“No” Derek grabbed his hips and pulled him back over, making him hiss and snap. 

“Yes” He swatted at the shark, holding his claws back as to not scratch him. The shark nipped at his ear fins and he fell in a reluctant silence. Another tactic came to mind and he pressed closer, nuzzling at the sharks neck and gills, trilling softly with wide eyes. He watched in glee as the sharks eyes flickered blue and his nostrils flared as he breathed deep. He ran his nose along the sharks jaw and whistled low, surprising himself but not caring. 

“Fine” Derek grunted, promptly throwing him into the water. Stiles clicked and wiggled around, rolling around as some of his scales finally fell off and drifted around him in a small, glittering cloud. Spots of gold started to appear on his tail where the bleached scales fell off. Derek joined him after a few seconds and he grinned up at him, still unable to hold his own position in the water. 

Stiles grabbed the sharks arm when he got close enough and pointed at the entrance of the cave frantically, nuzzling and pawing at him until he snapped his teeth, moving them forward. He paused at the open waters but everything was clear. Stiles became inpatient, grabbing the sharks shoulders and moved himself around so he was over him. He wrapped his arms tighter, drawing himself closer and grunting happily. 

“Need to move.” He nipped at the neck under him and the shark huffed, shooting out of the cave at speeds Stiles barely ever made. He held on tight and let out a delighted whistle, making the shark rumble under him. 

They careened around the rock formations and he felt his stomach lurch from how fast they were making turns, ending up near the kelp forest before turning and racing parallel to the beach. Stiles chirped and whistled as they chased a school of fish turning after a larger one and catching it with a small plume of blood. Derek twisted with the catch in his mouth and shot up, dragging him along until they broke the surface. Stiles gasped as he was thrown up a little bit and fell with a massive splash, hanging onto the sharks arm with delighted chirps. He grinned wide when he saw the delight in the sharks eyes and the small smile on his face.

“Here” Derek held the fish out to him and he felt his stomach flip for an entirely different reason. He shot him a shy smile, taking the fish and holding onto him tighter as the waves started to push them closer to land. He still couldn’t move his tail much and needed to keep contact with the shark so he could eat without drifting away. Using his claws, he pried the head off and handed it over, floating on his back as he chewed on the remains with his arm looped through the sharks. His heart was pounding hard and his skin tingled where they were touching so much so that he didn’t even taste his meal. 

“Thank you” He wasn’t sure if it was just the fish or everything, but he felt the shark should know that he was grateful for his help, for not being eaten. The shark blinked at him, his eyebrows raised and completely silent, making him jumpy. “Come get me when you’re done.” He popped the last of the fish in his mouth and ran his cheek along the sharks own before letting go. 

His cheek burned as he twisted so he could see where he was sinking down to and shifted around, trying to ease the itching over his body. He could use his hands a little to move himself around, struggled when it put pressure on his bad palm, tugging at his wrappings. He flicked his fin on his hip, the kelp had fallen off during his ride. It did little to help him steer. He took a second to pick at the pale scales on his wrists as he thought about his inability to swim.

After a while, the shark joined him, drifting around as they watched the schools of fish. Stiles thrilled when the creature slid under him and lifted him up, grabbing his hands and pulling them around his neck. It was a little awkward with the dorsal fin lower down but he felt his heart lighten as he was pulled along. 

They didn’t head straight back to the cave, instead swimming in lazy curves, only heading in the general direction of the cave. He pulled back a hand and used it to trace the strange marking on his back, nuzzling where the fin would appear when he lost control. The day worn at him and he closed his eyes, holding loosely as he watched the water pass him by. 

“Home?” He tucked his chin over the sharks shoulder and closed his eyes, letting him do the work as he fell limp. “Tired.” He hissed and moved his hand up to hold on better. The shark hummed at him, turning them toward the cave and he started to rub along his back, scenting and marking without thinking. They made it to the cave and he was tucked into the sand, little billows of particles waving around him. 

“Rest” The shark soothed, petting his hair and he wiggled down to hide in the sand, covering himself up. The last thing he could hear was the shark laughing at him. 

Over the next few days, they spent in the same manner. Derek carrying Stiles around as he gained his strength back, Stiles using the rides to test the usefulness of his tail. It made them a strange looking pair and several times humans would stop from far off and watch them. Derek would usually carry him to deeper waters so they couldn’t see. He made sure to keep Stiles well fed while they traveled around the territory. He tried swimming on his own to see how well his wounds were healing and everything seemed to be doing well. 

The shark found an outcropping of rock near the shore that was smooth to the touch and cleaned by the sea so there wasn’t a massive amount of bird droppings to get into his wounds. He didn’t want to sun there at first but he missed the warmth, craving more then what he could get through the little opening on the rock. He only agreed to it if the shark stayed close, swimming around the rock incase humans or the shark appeared, letting more of the scales rub off on the rocks. 

He got the courage to venture out of the cave when Derek left to see if the Alpha was still on living on the other side of the kelp forest, swimming in steady circles around it until he was tired. He nearly knew the small patch of ocean as well as he did the cave he grew up in. He learned some of the patterns of the fish and watched them closer. On the latest solo trip, he caught a fish that he excitedly brought back to the cave. He could finally feed the shark a full meal in return.

He buried himself in the sand to hide by the entrance, though he knew that the shark knew exactly where he was and waited. The shark swam by like he didn’t see a thing and Stiles shot out, chirping as he caught his tail to move himself up to his front. Derek stilled as his body was moved by him, curling happily in the water above him so he could drift down face to face. 

“Look!” He held is fish out excitedly, not expecting the shark to flinch away. He stared in shocked silence as Derek fled from the cave without looking behind him. His emotions rolled through him and he bowed his head, trying to understand what he did wrong. It felt great to catch something for the shark, to provide for someone. Someone who could be a potential mate. He thought that he would at least accept it since he had been feeding Stiles for so long.

He clucked his tongue in confusion before sinking back into his sand. The shark laughed at him whenever he buried himself, finding glee in the way that he only covered his top half. He avoided getting his tail completely covered in sand like it would kill him. Derek kept it wrapped in kelp, letting his other wounds be free after a few days of healing, snapping his teeth whenever Stiles fiddled with it too much. He loved that he had someone to take care from him but now it felt like he was being crushed under the rocks again.

Anger swamped through him and he clawed his way up to the sandy ledge, dropping the fish into to small pool before moving to the spot that the shark slept in. The sun was already past its high point and he sat himself on the rock, crossing his arms as he waited for the shark to return. He would have to explain himself. It’s not like Stiles was completely in the wrong, maybe in the grey parts but it was simple. Derek would make a great mate, and simply giving so many fish is a courting part of finding a potential mate in Mer life. He couldn’t even mention that he bared his neck to the shark. 

He tried to stay awake. He really did try to use his anger to fuel his body but the look of pain on the sharks face before he left made it all drift away. His body ached from the strain of chasing the fish and the strangely cold water soothed his aching joints but not the one in his chest. A crack of thunder snapped him out of his doze and he used the sides of the rock to get to the entrance, staring in horror at the rolling storm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think.


	5. Sick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles faces the storm but it has varying outcomes.

Stiles let out a panicked whistle, trying to call the shark back to him and the safety of the cave. There was no reply. The water swirled around him and he buried his hands into the sand, sniffing desperately for any scent of his blood in case he was wounded. There was not sign of the shark and he leaned forward just a little more to chirp, listening in vain for a reply or echo. The current suddenly picked him up, throwing him out of the cave. He spiraled out of control as debris whirled around him. He struggled to right himself a second before he slammed into a rock outcropping near the shore. It was one that Derek had persuaded Stiles to sun on. It was to smooth for him to get a grip. 

He whistled again before crying out, the storm throwing him off the rock and back into the ocean. Wave after wave hit him, turning him head over tail many times as it carried him away. He hissed at low rumble that came from off to the side. He twisted around to face it, clinching his jaw in fear at the memory of the Alpha shark. The creature approached him at break neck speeds, moving like a shark. He had a heartbeat before they collided, Dereks momentum carried them backward and onto the beach. 

Stiles curled in his arms as he was pulled away from the pounding waves, the rain sufficient on keeping them wet until everything calmed down once more. The storm was already moving on and he shoved the shark away from him, turning his back. He didn’t get to save the day and Stiles wasn’t going to accept anymore mating signals if he wasn’t going to act like it. He crossed his arms over his chest and flared out his back fin to warn him off, praying the warmth on his cheeks was normal for such things. 

The shark was silent for the longest time, long after the rain petered off. Stiles started to shake from having the warmth of the shark so close and not being able to touch. He became aware of the shark petting his fin, gently running his fingers across it until he could smooth it down his back. Stiles let the shark shift forward, attempting to make apologetic chirps to get his attention and nuzzled against his neck. 

“No, you don’t get to act like mate without being…” He swatted at him and glared over his shoulder as he hissed warning. He had to look away at the broken look the shark was giving him. He had to at least explain. “Potential mates provide food and protection, comfort if their partner gets hurt. I… Gave you the fish to show I liked it but you…. You rejected it. Rejected me.” He stopped, pressing his lips closed and blinking as a drop of rain landed on his eye, making him shake his head. He gave a soft whine and rolled onto his stomach so he was farther away and buried his face in his arms, trying not to whine anymore. 

“Stiles.” Derek buried his face in what he could reach of his neck and he closed his eyes, letting his head fall to the side. “It’s the same for Sharks. We don’t take mates often since it’s difficult to meet one that we could live with. At first I just wanted to help since the Alpha was my uncle, but then I got to know you and I want… I tried to learn your noises.”

“But you rejected my fish!” Stiles wiggled around so he was facing the shark, his arms getting tucked against his broad chest as he was pulled closer. It was still strange to talk in more than chirps and clicks but they needed to. 

“I thought you wanted to leave. You could hunt for yourself now.” The shark soothed, and he leaned forward until their foreheads were touching. “I didn’t know what I would do if I lost you.” Stiles felt his mouth fall open as he stared into the sharks eyes, honest as can be. Part of him hated the way his throat closed up and how his stomach was flipping. It didn’t help that his fins flickered around him in his delight, making the eye contact break as the shark followed the motion with a growing smile. 

“I guess… now that we got it all out there… Will you be my mate?” He stuttered after clearing his throat, knowing he wasn’t doing it right. They had a ritual for accepting mates but he didn’t think it would work for them. They were different species. The kiss was worth it thought, even thought it was a little awkward. 

Everything became a blur of rain and nuzzles. The shark taking charge and flipping him on his back after a while, getting on top of him. Stiles laughed as he sank slightly into the sand from their combined weights. They both made grunts of surprise but it didn’t last long. He thrilled in delight and dragged the shark down, burying his teeth in his neck, just under his hairline by his ear. He felt his own skin split painlessly around the sharks own, sharper teeth and blacked out. 

Stiles woke to his new mating bite being nuzzled. It was no longer raining and he groaned in pain. Everything was sore. In the heat of the moment, he forgot his wounds and the sand got into everything. The moon floated above them and he swatted at his mate, getting him to ease up on the love. He gently helped him back into the water and started to carry him into the cave. He let the other fuss over him, making successful attempts at concerned clicks. The wrap on his tail was lost in the storm and he didn’t bother to look at the damage. 

He was tucked into his spot underwater, Derek running his hands over the wounds before kissing him and swimming away. Stiles stared after him affectionately, whistling low and hearing a returning laugh. He should probably tell the shark that whistles are mostly for mates. Exhaustion tickled the back of his mind and he let himself doze, being careful to not let the tide take him away again. 

When Derek returned, he handed him a fish that made him laugh, making a show of giving him back the head. He should tell the shark that the rejected fish was still in the pool as well but he had time for that. His mate wrapped his tail back up as he ate and he settled onto his stomach, his tail aching far too much to be on his back. He trilled happily when the shark settled next to him and held him close, his skin feeling cooler than before. He twisted around, struggling to ease the strange heat coming from his tail. His mate grumbled softly and he dropped a kiss on his closest shoulder before shutting his eyes. 

The next time Stiles woke, he felt like he was drifting aimlessly around the sea again. He couldn’t tell if he was on his back or facing down. He struggled to focus his eyes on what was in front of him. Time started to passing strangely. First slowly, as he watched the stars move across the sky while holding back pained whines, then fast as he woke up in the middle of the next night. Only to close his eyes for what felt like a heartbeat to see that it was morning again. The water was too cold, his mates hands too hot where they held him, his voice to loud when he called to him, then to faint when Stiles tried to answer. Soon he could do nothing but float there.

He could feel his mates panic, but he hadn’t the energy to calm him, to croak out any sort of comfort. The terrible scent coming off his tail worked its way through his muddled brain, telling him that it had become infected somehow. Bits of fish were pressed against his lips but he couldn’t eat, then passed through to him with kisses but it wouldn’t be enough. For part of the sickness, there was a definite lack of his mate around him and he finally cried out, calling out to him as he tried to move. His tail was just dead weight behind him as he tried to drag himself toward the entrance of the cave despite not quite knowing what direction it was. 

When his mate finally returned, it was a little before the sun rose. The chilled waters doing little for the heat rolling off him. Stiles whined as he was lifted up, struggling to nuzzle the shark in greeting. He was vaguely aware of the fact that they were moving. He held on the best he could, his body hanging below the shark. The first brush of sand against the very tip of his tail made him screech, dragging himself closer to the shark to get away from the pain. His mate murmured soothingly but he realized they were in the shallows. 

“No” He clawed as the shark lifted him out of the shallows, pulling him onto the beach on their stomachs. “Please!” He snapped his teeth in warning as the sun started to rise and adrenaline flooded his weakened body. Humans would be out soon. 

“They can help, maybe... but I won’t leave you.” Derek petted him, but Stiles didn’t want to hear it. The shark knew he was terrified of humans. He knew that his mother had been taken by them for her beauty. It was why no one in his pod would accept him as a mate. He was deep golden-brown in color was unusual and hunters liked to take the ones with the bright colors for their prizes. No one wanted to lose a mate, so they payed him no mind. 

“You better be right.” He was too tired to argue much, his heart breaking at the thought of humans getting him, that his mate allowed it to happen. He didn’t care anymore. He turned his head away from the shark and waited for the pain, whining as a human walked up to them. Stiles hissed low at him, subconsciously moving against the shark, who remained traitorously silent. 

The human spoke in a calming tone, the muddled words didn’t make since as he crouched near them on his strange legs. Stiles flicked his working fins uncomfortably as he watched the humans eyes travel up and down his tail, taking it in. Stiles glanced over his shoulder and shuttered at the green and yellow edges around his wounds. The smell seemed to increase as he moved away, making him gag as he slumped against his mate. 

“Trust me, my mate.” Derek murmured in his ear, wrapping a possessive arm around his waist, careful of the missing fin and snapped a warning as the human tried to scoot closer. Stiles stared desperately at the shark before falling limp. He did trust the shark. He was just being dramatic. He trusted his mate with his death, so it shouldn’t be that hard for him to trust him with his life. 

A sharp pain in his tail made him squeak and chitter a complaint to his mate, seeing a strangely familiar, brightly colored bunch of feathers sticking out of it. His mate plucked it out and held it up with a confused look before flinching as one buried itself in his own tail. Stiles would’ve laughed at the insulted look on the sharks face as he glared up at the humans. He would’ve if he wasn’t falling into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will have more humans. Please comment,   
> (PS, they totally had sex on the beach)


	6. Humans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter of Stiles waking up with Derek.

Stiles woke to a blinding brightness making him see red through his lids and oddly pain free. He kept his eyes shut as he listened, hearing the muffled sound of humans talking. He vaguely realized that his mate was already up, swimming in slow circles around him and he stretched his hand out to him, clicking to get his attention. The light was suddenly blocked and he blinked open his eyes, seeing the sharks body as he hovered fretfully over him, his face showing the strain he had never seen before. 

“You were sleeping for so long.” Derek nuzzled his neck and he trilled, moving him so he could block the light again. It made the pounding in his head ease after a few seconds of hiding, his face buried in the sharks chest. He rolled over to get the pressure off of his tail and wrapped his arms around the shark, letting him know that he was feeling better. The humans became silent and he placed a confused kiss on his neck. Wondering why he wasn’t skinned yet and thrown back into the ocean. The gold of his scales was showing despite the wounds tearing through them. Derek glared at the edge of their prison, but Stiles got distracted by his surroundings. 

The sand under him felt off, grainer then what he was used to, and it didn’t bloom up as much when he moved around. The tank was all flat walls and sharp corners but there was a large rock near the middle that he wanted to use to hide from the humans that he could see. Two had their faces pressed against the glass while an older one watched from the further back. He recognized the human from the beach but the two looked younger, more eager. He looked them in the eye and hissed before tugging at the shark to move them behind the rock. 

It wasn’t a rock. He wasn’t quite sure what it was, but it wasn’t a rock. There was a tunnel through it and he reached out to ran his hand along the rough surface. It wasn’t as smooth as the ocean rocks, little bits of smaller rocks peeking out and what looked like bubbles that got stuck. 

He pawed nervously at his mate who pulled him closer and lapped at the healed wound across the gills on his neck, just below the mating bite. His scales fell off easily now, and he would give anything to be dull again, to not have the patches of gold showing through. He’d endure all the itching in the world to keep his mate from feeling the heartbreak that his father did. He placed a kiss on his neck in return, trilling weakly as he held on.

He slowly pulled back the rest of the way, running his hands down his chest and stopped at his tail. It wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be. There wasn’t any fresh blood and the puffy, pink flash had eased to a pale raged line. The end was wrapped with what looked like white kelp, only softer, but there was a yellow substance bleeding through. The missing fin on his hip had crosses over the flesh, pulling the wound closed. 

He flipped over onto his stomach and looked over his shoulder to see how the back was. It was worse than the front, a few crosses on the larger gashes to hold them together. He had a vague memory of waking up on his stomach on a cold surface, surrounded by voices and agony coming from one spot on his tail. He still couldn’t feel anything much, even when he touched it with his hands. 

“How long was I out?” he asked as Derek settled next to him, holding him close. 

“Sick for several sunrises, gone for about one before humans brought you back.” The shark muttered into his ear, petting him with his palms, holding his claws far from his skin and scenting his neck. Stiles closed his eyes and leaned back, letting the shark comfort him with his presence as he trilled softly to calm him. “Hurt?” 

“No.” Stiles admitted somewhat grudgingly as he snuggled close. He shuttered as something tapped on the glass and the humans started talking again. He slowly peered out of the tunnel to see the blurred figures moving off. Derek tugged at him, cocking his head to the side as he listened. They remained a little way from the tank, moving around and he shot a confused glance at the shark. “Why?”

The shark didn’t answer, choosing to glare at the humans before pulling him back. They settled down and Stiles couldn’t help himself. He tried to understand what the humans were saying. There was a lot that he didn’t understand but he did catch a few words that made sense to him. 

He knew the lore that Mer learned to speak words from humans long ago. Before they only communicated with chirps and trills, but with words and a smidge of language, they managed to speak deeper about things and teach humans navigation about stars and what parts of the ocean to avoid. Sharks were taught the language and they worked on not killing each other for sport, the sharks explaining that Alphas risk going mad with their power. 

There was a splash followed by the sound of them leaving. Stiles nuzzled and pawed at the shark until he loosened his grip more and wiggled toward the opening. He let out a small chirp, flinching slightly as it bounced back to him and he realized he couldn’t deduce much from the echoes. He was never very good at it, wanting to make noises more than listen to any feedback. He stuck his head out and looked around. 

“No” Derek tugged him back and he sighed, letting himself be cuddled. “I couldn’t risk moving you until I knew it wouldn’t make it worse.” 

“I feel fine… now” He slowly stated, hating that he had to admit it but wanting to calm his mate. He sank against his body, breathing deeply through his gills. The water tasted different, so he focused on the scent of his mate. “What are they going to do?”

“When I was younger, my sister got hurt and these humans took her. They helped her, brought her back to us.” Derek stopped, and he turned to look at him. “I didn’t know you were so scared of them, but I was losing you.”

“You left.” Stiles lifted his eyebrows questioningly and the shark nodded. 

“There was a… plant that my mother used to use to fight off infections, but the Alpha is living in that part of the ocean. I tried to get to it, but he attacked. When I got back, you were worse, and I went to my last resort.” 

“The humans.” Stiles finished. He knew they would take care of mer, but he mostly encountered hunters. He twisted around a little more so that he was facing the shark, burying his face in his neck and whined. He didn’t want to lose him. 

“You should rest.” He smiled as the chest in front of him rumbled and he trilled. They would be fine. He let the shark hold him as he dozed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment on what you think so far.


	7. Tanks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He learns more about people.

Stiles was bored and being in a tank, which was a new word he learned from listening to the humans, was making it so much worse. Derek did the best he could on keeping him still, letting him ride around and he went as fast as he could in a circle around the tank until they were both tired. After that they would just drifted in lazy circles, Stiles either hanging under the shark or sprawled over his back. 

The humans came and went, sometimes a larger one would stop and watch Derek, a yellow one would watch Stiles. They dropped food into the tank, holding it in what they called a bucket and leaving. Derek would never let him swim up and get it, mostly because it hurt his tail to work it so much and swimming straight up put a strain on him. The shark also tried to keep him from the humans since he hissed continuously and took hiding in the tunnel for half the day to calm completely down again whenever they took him away to clean his wounds. 

He still didn’t know how long they were going to be kept. He could only hope that it wasn’t for good. His mate was getting antsy about it all. He took to swimming in slow circles around the tunnel rock and watching the walls of the tank. It would take Stiles several chirps to get him to snap out of it and come back to him. At the moment, they were both watching from the entrance as the humans lowered something new into the water. 

Stiles gave a questioning grunt, patting at his mates shoulder before rolling on top of him to get a better view. Derek propped himself up with one arm and held him in place with the other, making him smile and rest his chin on top of his head. There was a cooing sound from outside the tank and his mate grumbled angerly. Stiles twitched his ear fins as he tried to hone in on the sound but a heartbeat later he froze. 

“Hello?” A voice came though the strange thing the humans lowered into the tank, warbled and hopeful and Stiles was moving. He swam up to the surface before his mate could grab him and surfaced, using the lip of the tank to pull himself up.

“You can talk?” he hissed angerly at the bright yellow human, her eyes wide and her body partially soaked by his surfacing. “I thought it was just a myth that humans speak!”

“Holy sh…” The female was interrupted by Derek who surfaced and pressed possessively against his side, glowering at the humans and snapping his teeth. 

“You should be more careful with your tail.” The shark growled against his ear fin, tickling him so he grinned. 

“You two are so cute” The female human gushed and he suddenly realized she was the one making the cooing noise outside of the tank. He flinched as a large male approached silently but stopped a few feet behind the female. 

“Your mate is right. You are still healing.” The dark male spoke low and he cocked his head to the side. “My name is Boyd, this is Erica.”

“Names? Um… I’m Stiles, and Derek.” He leaned a little more against his mate. He was talking to a human. A dangerous being that killed his mother. He shook his head in confusion, trying not to flinch again as they approached. They did fix his tail, stopping the infection he picked up on his wounds. They seemed more focused on making him comfortable then harming him.

“He doesn’t like your kind” Derek shifted them, so he was between him and the humans.

“He’s not supposed to like your kind.” Erica shot back and he found himself smiling a little into his mates shoulder. 

“I didn’t hurt him.” The shark huffed and Stiles glanced between the two.

“What about the bite on his neck?” He buried his face in his mates neck, giggling slightly as his face heated up. He could feel the heat coming off the shark and decided to save him. 

“It’s a mating mark. See, he has one from me.” He made the shark tilt his head just enough for them to see before twisting around the face them again. “It was… eventful” He grinned when the shark snorted out a laugh. 

“Ew. I don’t want to know that.” She waved her hands in front of her but Boyd stepped forward. 

“Deaton will. There’s never been a recorded pairing like this. We knew you were mates due to your behavior, but not about the markings.” He spoke calmly, glaring a warning at his partner before turning back to Stiles. “How is your tail feeling?” 

“Like it was trapped under a boulder and I ripped it out.” He deadpanned and flicked water at them for emphasis. They dodged away but immediately returned. 

“I thought the Alpha got you.” Derek lifted his eyebrows questioningly and he nodded. 

“He was the one who knocked the boulder loose and it landed on my tail. I pulled it out before he could come back and eat me.” Stiles explained, shuttering slightly as he remembered it all. 

“How did you get separated from your pod?” Erica asked, breaking them apart slightly. Stiles gladly turned to her. He didn’t want to look at the confusion on his mates face. 

“It’s… complicated.” He wrinkled his nose before shrugging, his mind working on decoding the words she used and he realized he didn’t want to talk to them anymore. “Humans are monsters to us.” It was the simplest answer he could come up with. His mate nodded next to him and he swallowed roughly at the slightly betrayed looks on the humans faces. 

“Hunters killed my entire family, drove my uncle to insanity so he can’t come out of the Alpha stage.” Derek stated dully, and he leaned over to plant a soothing kiss on his cheek, turning so he could rub his scent along his neck. 

“I heard about that.” Boyd nodded sadly and Derek jerked back in shock. “We tried to stop them. It’s illegal to hunt any sort of mer or shark. They were never caught.”

“So only some humans are… I mean, you two helped. It’s just… I’ve been attacked by humans before.” He shook his head, trying to fully understand what was happening. The next thing he knew he was being dragged through the water, gently being set on the sand. He shifted so he was half buried in the sand like usual and felt his mate settle on top of him so it just looked like he was resting on the sand. 

“Rest some more” the shark nuzzled against what he could reach and he closed his eyes, his mind rolling against him but his body fighting to drop him into nothingness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More later, tell me what you think.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a longer chapter with them still in the tank.

“How did you two meet?” Erica was sitting with what she called laptop, tapping at it and he cocked his head to the side, trying to see what was happening on the flat part that she turned away from him. He pouted at her but she waved her hand to get him to continue. She said it would help pass the time to talk it out. Derek huffed and went back to swimming around in circles while Stiles decided that he could learn something out of it. Studying the humans as much as he was studied. 

“An Alpha shark that turned out to be his uncle, which was living along his territory, chased me and I got hurt.” He peered around, laughing faintly when his mate came up beside him and rested his chin on his shoulder with a bored grunt. He trilled softly, turning his head to the side to rub his cheek along his mates face, delighted that he was near again. 

“So you were hurt and you let the smaller shark take you?” He grinned at the no-nonsense look the human was giving him. Her eyes narrowed as she watched the shark bobbing the water next to him and he hissed softly at her in warning. 

“Simple. I was bleeding out, my tail was damaged beyond being any means of escape, Derek was at the mouth of the little cave I tried to hide in and even if I survived the shark attack, I would starve.” He swallowed thickly and looked down. “I thought he looked nice, that he would make my death quick, so I took his hand. Blacked out and woke up with him tending to my wounds.” He nibbled at his lip as he looked at his mate. 

“You thought I looked nice?” Derek smirked but there was hurt in his eyes. He knew it would hurt him.

“I didn’t want to…hurt anymore” He explained softly, “And I don’t.”

“But your tail…” he started, pressing a careful hand over a large scar forming at the now fast healing wound and Stiles wiggled a little at the strange feeling. 

“It’s actually a blessing that I’m not a solid color anymore.” He chirped happily, looking down at the pinkish-gold stripes along his tail. “Hunter don’t like stripes.” 

“What?” Boyd sat down with a frown, sharing a look with Derek before everyone turned to look at him as they waited for him to explain himself.

“How about you explain from the very beginning.” His mate prompted, and he shrugged. It had to come out sometime, thought he hoped that he could be just him and his mate. The humans would ask anyway. 

“I’m not… desirable by my kind.” He started, ducking his head and chittered a little nervously at his mates face. Hopefully he wouldn’t leave him when he found out he got the guppy out of the crowd.

“But, you’re amazing and…and funny and smart and… beautiful and” Derek stopped when he realized he was laughing, a faint blush coming to his cheeks as the shark hid his own embarrassment by dunking under for a heartbeat. “I once saw you wait for hours, holding a baby bird so you could put it back in its nest.” He deadpanned, and Stiles grinned, remembering the day when he was still in the ocean.

“Then I got attacked by the parents and fell back into the water while screaming.” He could hear a tiny snicker come from Erica but he was focused on the shark. He needed to understand what he was in for. 

“I saw, and I still wanted to be your mate.” Stiles pretended to be offended, seeing the faint ticks of the sharks lip as he fought his smile. 

“You just got lucky.” He turned back to the humans who looked lost at their conversation. It was fun to talk to the shark, their minds clashing in the best ways now that they were learning more. 

“Um, why did this all start because you weren’t desirable” Boyd managed to snap out of it first, nudging Erica and she fiddled with the laptop. 

“It actually started with hunters. They came and hunted the brightest and those with solid color, like me and my gold. Like… Like my mother” He wiggled so his mates arm was around his chest and took a deep breath. “I was there when they caught her. She tried to get me free before they dragged us up with the nets. I was just about to be of teaching age. They said I wasn’t big enough, a human picked me up by the end of my tail and threw me back in. That was the last time I saw her.” He stopped, hissing at the pain in his chest and clung a little tighter to the shark. 

“I’m sorry” Erica reached out and patted him on his head, making him break out of his memories and smile at her. She liked trying to pet him but never tried it with Derek. 

“My father almost died from heartbreak, but it was the final straw. Mer my generation didn’t want to feel that pain, to die of heartbreak when the hunters came back, so they started to choose mates with duller colors, spotted or stripes, anything other than a solid bright color.” 

“So you wouldn’t have a mate when the time came.” Erica nodded her head in understanding. “I can’t believe people let it get this far that hunters changed the breeding pattern of the species.” She sneered at the computer and he felt like she would be terrifying in a fight. 

“I thought I was fine with being alone. I had my friends, family to help but then the adult shedding came and I… I was left alone. Everyone was pairing off and talking about nothing else but mating that I couldn’t take it. I swam to the very outskirts of our territory to just…get away from the fact that I would be alone for life. I wasn’t supposed to be so far out. Hunters saw me and tried to get me.” He frowned, trying to think of the right words. 

“Could you describe them if you saw them?” Boyd asked carefully and he shrugged, not caring that he could. What good were nightmares? 

“They were the ones that took my mother, but they didn’t use the net. There was a long thing the old human used, it put feathers into my side with a sharp point. It made me feel sick and I couldn’t move. I thought they were going to get me but a current picked me up and dragged me to deeper waters. I woke up with no way home and to sick to get out of the current. I tried to get my bearings without going to the surface because the hunters. I wondered around for a moon before the Alpha shark attacked.”

“What time frame is a moon?” Erica had stopped tapping but immediately started again. 

“The… time?” he shot a glance at the shark who shrugged. “When the moon is the same shape twice.”

“I thought so but I need to be sure” She waved her hand and looked at him. “You two are going to help change so many things.”

“What do you mean?” Derek snapped his teeth, still antsy from the story, and held him closer.

“Well, some very bad people, like the hunters, think that you’re just animals and do not deserve pity when they kill Mer and shark people.” Boyd growled low and he just stared. “You’ve proven that you’re intelligent and you feel things deeper than anything those monsters ever could.”

“What do you mean ‘intelligent’?” He growled out, a memory flickering in the back of his mind. “My mother was begging for my life, with a language that I now know you understand. They just laughed at us!”

“If I show you somethings, symbols of ours, could you be able to identify the symbol that was on their boat?” Erica was staring at him closely and he shrugged, nodding after he thought about it. The image was burned into his mind, being that he saw it as he sunk when he stared after his mother and then again as he was drugged. It was how he knew that it was the same hunters after all the time. That and the blond human who was with them, older but wilder. 

For the next few ‘days’ he and Erica worked with letters and soon he was able to pick out the correct looking order. Argent. It seemed to excite the human and she had run from the room. She left her laptop and he struggled to work it, the so called ‘touchscreen’ not responding to his fingers, the clicking of his nail making minute scratches on the screen. There was a smaller image of him and his mate on the screen but it kept disappearing behind little squares that kept appearing. He frowned as he nibbled on some food she left behind by the edge of the tank. It was warm and one of the best things he ever tasted. It also bounced slightly when he shook it, the curls making him giggle and distracting him from the laptop.

He stuck his head under the water and whistled, trying to get his mate to come and taste. He continued to eat, almost finishing the ‘fries’ and he looked around. The shark was swimming in slow circles, around the tunnel rock, a dazed look on his face. Stiles swallowed the last mouthful and dove down, catching on to his mate as he swung past. 

He gave a questioning trill and patted his face. There wasn’t a response, his eyes glazed over completely. There wasn’t a moment of recognition or anything as Stiles nuzzled and kissed, trying to pull him back. He usually managed to get him out of his head, but this time the shark tried to shake him off. He went as far as nipping at his chin and jaw but nothing happened, even after he tasted blood. He waited until he was by the food again and swam easily to where the fries were, grabbing a few as he waited for his shark to come back around. 

His mate tried to move away but he caught his arm, pulling himself up and jamming the food into his mouth. He was thrown off and quickly moved so he was flat against the sand, staring up at the shark in shock. He was sick. The humans returned and he shot up to them, breaching the surface so fast that water splashed them. Erica turned away in time so only her back was soaked but Boyd wasn’t so lucky, getting a face full of water.

“You have to help my mate!” He wailed, hoping he was choosing the right words now that he was stressed. “He’s sick or something.” The humans were moving, Erica to his side and Boyd down some stairs that ran along the side of the tank so he could see in, moving with his shark so he could watch. 

“What happened?” she demanded, a rectangle in her hand held away from them. It looked a little like a smaller laptop but he couldn’t focus on that.

“He’s been getting lost, not responding but I could snap him out of it before.” He watched frantically as his mate turned again and slammed his tail against the tank as he turned. He chittered in concern and tried to move forward, sure he would break something. Erica grabbed his arm to keep him back and he clawed at her, more a response at being grabbed then truly trying to free himself. 

“He needs to leave.” Boyd ran back up the steps and took off through a door. 

“What do you mean leave?” Stiles tugged at the humans arms and she held him. 

“Sharks don’t do well in captivity. It’s amazing that he lasted this long before he fell back on instincts. We thought you two being here together would be enough but he needs to go back to the ocean tonight.” Erica glanced down at him and shook her head. He knew what it meant. They were going to split them up. 

“Send me home with him, please.” He glanced between the human and his mate but he knew the answer. Their boss wouldn’t let him leave, the bald man to focused on his healing then anything he had to say about it.

“You can’t leave. He’ll be in a daze a few days after he gets back to the ocean, and you won’t be able to take care of yourself yet.” She shook him slightly when his attention drifted toward his mate. “He needs to leave, but I can convince my boss to get you back in three days. If your blood work comes back with flying colors.” He didn’t pretend to know what she was talking about, let alone how blood was meant to work on something. “He’s going to die, Stiles.”

“What?” He flicked his tail nervously as the shark swam by again. 

“He’ll die if he can’t eat. He’ll be in a daze in the ocean, but there’ll be fish for him to catch. We’re going to bring in a sling, and we need you get him in it. Can you do that for us?” She continued to shake his shoulders until he bowed his head.

“I… I think so.” He fought against the whines growing in his chest and dropped down, swimming until he was in the path of his mate. He wrapped his arms around his mate, his face buried in his chest. He hummed soothingly, running his clawed hands up and down his back before tugging a little at his shoulder, making the shark turn. 

The humans were already lowering a large cloth into the water and he nudged the shark toward it. It took a few tries to get him in, the misses leaving him tired but he managed it. He buried his face in his mates neck one last time, whistling and chirping in a last attempt to wake him. When he pulled back the shark sniffed at him but that was it. He whined loudly as the humans began lifting them away, Stiles still hanging out of the front so he could see his mate but Erica’s hand came as they started to leave the water, landing on his chest and shoving him back gently. 

“Derek!” He called as he splashed into the water, crying out as the shark started to panic in the sling. There was a flash of blue and he knew by the way the humans were yipping that he had turned to his beta form. They all scrambled away except Boyd and Erica. Stiles could see them talking to his mate as they moved off. Stiles pulled himself up over the edge of the tank and stared after him, holding in his calls to keep it from getting worse.

After they were out of sight, he let go and sunk to the sandy floor, not bothering to cover himself as he buried his face in his arms. He’s cries were far from quiet but he didn’t care. It hurt. The pain in his tail was minimal, but his heart ached. His neck burned form the bite mark and he wanted his mate back. It already felt like he had been without him for a while, the sickness causing him blank out. He felt the same blankness fill his mind and he closed his eyes, not wanting to see how empty the tank was now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment.


	9. Back to the sea.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles learns some news.

Over the next few days everything became to much. He ate little of the fish that he was given, floating on his back most of the time or dozing miserably under the sand in the tunnel cave. Erica and Boyd tried to talk to him but they disappeared more often than before so he didn’t try to put on a show of being fine. He used to all the time in his pod so he didn’t feel like he had to here. They knew he was broken, they were the ones who took his mate away so they could see what they did to him.

“Stiles, I need you to come up here.” Erica’s garbled voice came from the box, her tapping on he tanks side doing nothing to get him to move. He flicked his ear fins in irritation and shoved himself up so he could at least see the human. She waved at him and he made a rude hand gesture she taught him. He glowered up at her and hissed, snapping his teeth when she did it back with both hands. Rolling his eyes, he swam up to her with little difficulty and grabbed the edge of the tank, pulling himself up and clicking when she bounced in front of him. “What sex are you?”

“Um, you can be sex?” He wrinkled his lips, concerned over his friends mind. 

“Uh… A tab or slot?” She motioned downwards, and he blinked. “Dick or hole?”

“Dick?” He felt his face heat up as he thought about the mating.

“Then how are you…. What are the words you know…? With child?” She scratched her chin and he shrugged.

“That’s because we were hunted since the you discovered us, and males became…modified to bear children when there’s a lack of females.” He prattled off when her words hit him. “Child?” 

“Geez, hunters really screwed with you guys.” Erica laughed at him and he just stared. He was with child, which was the point of mates and the process of mating. A strong bond meant a child first time and he wasn’t with his mate. He needed to get to his mate. 

“I need to leave” He stared at his body in shock. He needed his mate and his pod. He needed to get out of the tank and back to the ocean. Erica nodded and jumped to her ‘feet’. She vanished through a door and he dropped back into the water, swimming in anxious circles now that he knew he was fighting nature. He needed to get back to his mate, explain what happened, get to his pod, explain what happened to them and then start getting ready for the child. There was so much to do, but at least he got better at speaking human. Derek used to tell him that he wouldn’t shut up, either with words or noises.

“Stiles” He jerked out of his thoughts and saw that the man in charge was standing by the top of the tank waiting for him to respond. He approached the human wearily, the fact that he didn’t interact with Deaton often and he just found out he was with child made him more cautious when it came with dealing with him. 

“Yes?” He stopped about a tail length away from the human and resisted the urge to hiss. 

“I want you to know that you did good for your people today, and that you need to be extra careful when you get back to the ocean.” Deaton crouched down and he fought the urge to swim back. He was wrong. The man wasn’t completely human. “The world knows a lot about you two. We thought this was impossible. We didn’t know you talked, or that a shark and a Mer could conceive.”

“Yeah, well. It’s a bit of a shock for us as well.” He narrowed his eyes at the human who nodded like he understood.

“The hunters are going to want you both, and your child. You three are one of a kind.” Deaton turned as humans swarmed forward with the same looped fabric. Stiles swam toward them, pausing to make sure Erica and Boyd were there before he slipped in completely, refusing to say anything to the non-human beside the tank as he did. He slipped into the loop, pulling himself forward carefully and clacked his teeth at the strangeness. 

They lifted him up carefully, both of his friends talking to him soothingly and a few more humans picking up on it when they realized that he was calmer then his mate was. He stared at them in growing shock as they moved him. He never knew a group of humans could actually be nice, to be gentle and calming, almost like a pod as they cared for him. They loaded him up into a strange box and then he was zooming faster then he ever had before in his life. 

He stuck his head over the edges of the cloth and whooped as the wind blew his hair from his face. A human sitting next to him jumped before laughing. He grinned bashfully at him, his curls reminding him of the tasty fries but he shook it off. He was sure it had something to do with the guppy. He got cold fast, wishing he had his mate by him and ducked down again. 

It wasn’t long until he was near the water. He smelled it first, making him chirp in excitement and wiggle just enough for the curly haired human to smack his head to make him stop. He hissed a little but there wasn’t much heart to it. The box stopped moving and the humans swarmed around him again but it took way to long for him, so he started chittering at them to get them to move faster. Stiles held perfectly still as they finally lifted him out and started carrying him to the water. 

The beach was crowded, the humans moving around to let them pass and he curled in a little tighter on himself despite his excitement. They were all talking but he couldn’t make out what any one was saying. Several tried to peer up to look at him and a several were holding their own, younger children on their shoulders so they could see him. He was walked to the water, a few larger humans stepping to help when the tank people started to wobble under his weight. Erica moved to the front, directing where they went until they were in the water, waving the other humans away with the loop.

He wiggled out and flinched when the humans started to make a massive amount of noise. He ducked under and let out a loud whistle, listening close and smiling when he scented his mate near. He saw a flash of blue off to one side and gave a warning hiss. The shark jerked back in shock, eyes shifting back to hazel as he waved his hands around to slow his approach before slamming into him. 

He was lifted out of the water just enough for him to hear some of the humans scream but he didn’t care. He trilled through the sobs and held on as they twirled through the water. His mate scent-marked him, running his scruff up and down his neck and over his head before moving to the other side. His hands were everywhere, running along his body as he checked for any fresh injury before they both had to stick their heads above the water to breath, their reunion kicking up too much sand for his still weakened gills. 

“There they are.” He heard Erica shout with a laugh but he was to busy getting kisses planted along his face, soft noises of concern coming from the shark and he chirped happily. 

“We need to find my pod.” He nuzzled the mating mark on the neck in front of him, pulling back when he scented the distress. “Mer return to their familial grounds to give birth.” He nibbled at his lip as the confusion on the sharks face disappeared to understanding then a blinding smile. 

“Birth” He breathed out and placed his hand on his stomach and he closed his eyes nodding. He turned to wave at those who helped them, laughing as Erica jumped on Boyds shoulders to wave back at him over the others that were celebrating. 

“Let’s go.” He nudged at the shark until they started swimming. “Do you need to rest?” He asked softly, worried that the shark spent so much time worrying about him that he didn’t take care of himself. They swan side by side to the cave, where he was promptly placed on the sandy ledge and shown the small pool that was full of fish. He planted several thanking kisses on the shark before grabbing one, using his claws to work the head off and handed it to the shark as he rolled into the sand. It was still warm on his back and it didn’t hurt. 

“Where’s your pod?” Derek threw an arm around his middle as he chewed on his own fish, plucking one out to gnaw on after he was done with the head. He nipped at the sharks fingers when he held it out a piece of fish and snorted at the glee in the sharks eyes as he fed him. 

“That way” He pointed with his free hand but Derek was to busy gazing in the direction of his pod. He took the moment to steal the fish in his hands and shoved it all in his mouth. He missed the fish his mate provided. 

“Hey.” Derek didn’t sound as grumpy as before and he dropped down, closing his eyes as he wiggled into the sand. 

“Rest, Mate. We can go after you sleep, eat the rest of the fish and leave.” Derek tugged him closer and he tucked his head under his chin, sniffing his scent as he relaxed. He petted the sharks back before he remembered something. He wiggled around and reached out, pulling the tooth out from the crack in the wall, unwinding a cord from around his upper arm and started fiddling with it. Derek let out a questioning grumble, blinking at him even as his eyes dripped with contentment. Stiles held out the tooth on the cord, snorting at himself as he tied it to his wrist. 

“Where did you get that?” Derek yawned, tugging the wrist closer, his eyes glowing with tired delight. 

“Uh, found it in my hand after our first full day.” He explained, happy he had something to remember that day by. The shark pressed a kiss against his palm before pressing him into the sand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think so far.


	10. Pod

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles gets back to his Pod and has to explain.

It was comforting to travel back to his pod with his mate by his side, though it took several weeks, which was human term he learned while waiting for his tail to heal. He stopped at the edge of their territory, staring over it nervously as he tried to get his bearings. Derek was swimming in protective circles under him and he smiled. It was a comfort to be around him but he was worried about what his pod would say about him. He barely managed to finish the thought before there was an excited set of clicks and he turned to see Scott racing toward him with Alison by his side. 

Stiles shot backward and hissed a warning, fearing that they would try to tackle him and hurt his growing child. Derek shifted upward to protect him, making panic shoot through him and he threw himself in front of his mate so his pod mates wouldn’t attack him despite the fact that his scent was all over the shark. They stopped a tail length away and he held his hands out to him in a calming motion. 

“Mate” He pointed at the shark and then his neck. Scott rolled his eyes at him before shooting forward the last bit and throwing his arms around his shoulders, tucking him under his chin. 

“Brother.” The mer pulled back and smacked his cheek like he was being stupid. He held him at arms length and looked him up and down before glowering at the shark. Stiles clucked sadly that they didn’t get along but Allison distracted him by snuggling against his side, chirping excitedly as she sniffed him. He could catch the scent of a child on her and smiled tiredly. 

“How?” She breathed out, glancing between them both before shaking her head at them. 

“Derek.” He patted the shark who snorted weakly, dropping a hand on the waist, right over where he was missing his fin. “Dad?”

They both gave understanding clucks before taking off. He took off with Derek at his side, moving quickly and he chittered in excitement. He knew where they were going, to the caves that they all lived in but it was better with an escort. He had been gone for a long time and he smelled like shark and child. Mer were hanging around, looking at him with mixtures of curiosity and fear. Jackson snapped his teeth in open hostility, but Lydia slapped him hard, relief and delight coming from his friend. 

He slowly went to his cave, sniffing for his father and trilling in delight when he was home. Derek paused at the entrance, but he gave him a pat to let him know to wait there. His mate rumbled softly but did as he was told, turning his back to watch the Mers. He swam quickly around the bend of the cave and stared at the back of the Mer. The pale green tail flicked, turning him to face Stiles. He stared in shock but Stiles rushed forward, getting snatched into a hug before he could grab his father. He whined low, happy even though his arms were pinned to his chest from how fast he was grabbed. 

“Sorry” He whispered into his chest and felt his body relax at the scent of home. He was suddenly jerked back, his father cupping his face as he looked frantically at him before running up and down his body. The older Mer made distress sounds while his hands hovered over the scars running along his tail. They were still the large, bright pink tips on his end, the membrane yet to grow back completely.

“What happened to you?” He asked, his voice rough either from emotion or disuse. He wasn’t sure which one was worse. 

“I got knocked out by hunters, and then I didn’t know how to get back. I got attacked by an Alpha shark and…” He stopped when his father sniffed him.

“Did he force you to mate?” He growled and he feared for anyone who had to face the Mer in front of him if they wronged him. 

“No. The Alpha hurt me and I escaped right into the arms of a different shark. He didn’t hurt me but took care of my wounds and fed me. I was the one who made it personal and then we mated.” Stiles put as much emphasis on the fact that they mated after getting to know each other. 

“I can tell that.” His fathers eyes brightened all the more and he was being hugged again. He trilled happily before tugged at his arms, pulling him toward the entrance and his mate. The shark was flicking his tail nervously, but his arms were crossed and his face impassive. He looked angry. Stiles rolled his eyes and clicked his teeth as he swam over, dropping a kiss on his cheek and curling over him so he could shove him toward his father. 

“Mate Derek” He chirped brightly, and he smiled as his father narrowed his eyes questioningly at the shark. His mate instantly uncrossed his arms and blinked fearfully. “Derek, my dad.” He pressed against his side, laughing softly as he watched them. 

“Thank you for saving my son.” His father spoke evenly and Derek nodded stiffly. Stiles swam a little between them, crossing his arms and pouting. 

“I’m going to go tell Lydia about the humans.” He shot away before they could put in a word edgewise. He ducked his head and saw them still staring down each other. He shook his own head at their ways and headed straight to her cave, finding her halfway with a determined look on her face. Her hair flowed around her as she slowed to meet him, her pale teal tail curling under her. He didn’t hug her but grabbed her hands and moved her off to where they could talk. 

Mers had amassed around them when they arrived. Scott and Alisson were working on holding them back so it was easy just to talk to Lydia. He opened his mouth to start explaining when she wrapped her arms gently around him, making him snap his mouth shut in shock. They stayed like that for several minutes as she drew comfort from him. He patted her on the back, careful even though she wasn’t with child. He could tell she had mated and felt only a little sorry that it didn’t stick. He didn’t know how well of a parent her partner would be. 

“In my defense, I did find out that humans can talk.” He cringed as she jerked back, her nails digging into his arms. He instantly nipped at her wrist and she let go. “I am with child and I’ve been with one shark for that last, I don’t know how long so don’t touch so much.” 

“Humans?” She hissed angerly and he nodded. He had picked up on more advanced language, and so had Derek even though he didn’t use it as often as Stiles did.

“They healed me, at least the nice ones and promised to keep the hunters away. Erica was really angry.” He wrinkled his nose at the image of the blond human screaming at the hunters that were tied up and badly beaten. He shook the image from his head and smiled at the shocked mer. “I even told them what hunters attacked me, though Deaton said I had to be careful due to the whole… mating a shark and being with child.”

“You mated that shark! I thought he was just bringing you home.” She hissed and he rolled his eyes. 

“He’s mine and I’m his. Isn’t that what being mates is about?” He pulled them out of their hiding spot and started toward the others. Scott and Alisson circled around them before moving on. Melissa was waiting with his father, looking a little lost at the two creatures still talking in short sentences and glaring. He nudged his brother and shot forward, tackling the shark and turning him over on his back so he couldn’t move. 

“Stiles! What are you…?” Melissa raised her hands in shock and he ignored her, pulling himself so he hovering over his mates face.

“I win!” he hummed softly, letting go completely as Derek hands fell limp under him. 

“Stiles turn me over.” Derek growled at him, his lip twitching and his eyes flashing blue. 

“Fine, only for a kiss at a later date of my choosing…. And a race.” He twisted so he was under the shark and flicked his tail with ease, shoving his mate back right side up and took his hands. “I gotta tell the others everything, come on” He pulled him into the cave with the rest of his family following, as well as his extended family. His eyes landed on a pile of fish and he chirped, shooting a questioning glance at them all. 

“You need your strength for child.” Melissa smiled, nodding him on. It was all he needed. He settled on his stomach next to the pile, pulling Derek to sit by him as he started munching, doing the same thing they always do. 

“They are perfect for each other. He finishes Stiles heads.” Scott sounded resigned and he found himself wiggling in delight. He had to listen to his brother talk nothing but mating with Alison and how they were meant to be together forever. He was so getting back at him. 

“Well the bond did take well.” Melissa commented, nodding as she moved around him, taking in his scars with a clucking sound of distress. He shifted under her gaze, moving closer to his mate. 

“You know the story.” He said pointedly to him, curling around him slightly as he ate, his eyes dropping in contentment and exhaustion. 

“He was being a dramatic ass and left when…” Derek started and instantly got a fish head thrown at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you think.


	11. Peter?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few time jumps.

A few moons passed, and he got larger, but something was not right. He started to fear going near other mer that didn’t contain his immediate group and the others were starting to cause a ruckus about Derek living with them, the shark keeping to the edges and only returning to his side to give him food he hunted for him. They didn’t like how well Derek had managed to be such a good mate. 

Only the younger mer managed to hunt with the shark, understanding what it was they were meant to be doing. Derek only struggling a little with Scott over who was in change of the hunt. The young couples required a larger amount of food for those with child and they didn’t care if the shark helped them get it. However, he could tell where his life was going and he knew they were behind him. Scott and Allison would follow him, Lydia as well though she would bring Jackson with her. He also knew his mate would follow him anywhere. All he had to do was tell his father. 

Stiles let out a questioning thrill, chirping to show the older Mer that he wasn’t hurt as he shifted about in the sand on their cave, struggling to find a spot that would be comfortable with his growing stomach. He turned to the mer to see heartbreak in his eyes. 

“I know you will leave with him. You can’t be happy here anymore” His father bowed his head in defeat and Stiles quickly swam to his side, lifting his head back up. 

“I promise you can visit, but if my child is a shark, he won’t be accepted here.” He saw the shock on his fathers face before it turned to understanding. His father wasn’t thinking about the child, only the pain of loosing his own child to something he couldn’t change. The other mers would never accept Derek fully, but Stiles and a few others would.

“I might just follow you.” He grinned, chirping happily and hugged his father. “I will still have to come back.”

“I know.” Stiles breathed in his scent on last time before dragging him out of the cave, swimming up to the surface. It took a little while, stopping to rest, looping his arm through his fathers so he didn’t have to use his tail much. Once they breached the water, he stared at the stars until he got his barings, floating on his back until he could point him in the right direction. 

“Up the beach, several suns journey.” He smiled, wishing he had the words that his father would understand to fully explain the beauty of his mates cave. The shark already admitted he missed home, and Stiles could easily bring his home with him. His mate also offered his cave to the other young pairings that were going with them. 

“You are leaving tonight.” It was a statement and they both sunk back into the sea. He shot his father a look, letting out a soothing thrill before nodding. It would take time to get everyone settled and ready for their children. Lydia wanted to meet Boyd and Erica but he didn’t know if it was the right thing to do. Erica and Lydia talking could cause massive waves. His father tugged him into a hug and he held on, letting the Mer hold onto his for as long as he needed to as they drifted down. 

A familiar chirp brought his attention to his mate, swimming around the four mers that decided to leave with them. It looked like he was trying to heard them toward the edge of the caves while struggling not to come to Stiles. He made a soft chitter to let him know to wait. His father finally pulled back and pressed his lips on his forehead in farewell. Stiles gave him a smile before swimming to his new pod. It was small, but they would look after each other in a way he didn’t trust the other Mer to watch his back. 

He chittered happily as he joined the others, Allison joining him in the center as the others took positions around them. They were the ones expecting. Lydia took the lead, knowing where they were going despite the fact that she never traveled out of the territory before. Scott tried to take either side of them, moving back and forth until he settled next to his mate. Derek took under them, looking out for anything ready to attack from below and Jackson took the rear, mostly moping that he had to follow his mate.

They didn’t get to rest often, being that they were too close to strange humans and it made both Scott and Derek a little crazy about getting them somewhere safe before they could rest. Stiles moved about the strange territories easily, used to the newness and trusting his mate. Allison held her belly, holding onto Scott whenever he swam close enough as she watched the waters. Lydia chirped occasional, better at listening to the echoes than he could hope to be. Even Jackson was jumpy, going as far as nudging Stiles closer toward the middle of the pod.

By the time they reached the cave, he was exhausted and excited at the same time. He chirped happily, shooting into the cave and rolling around in the sand where they usually sleep, making a cloud plume up around him. He caught a glimpse of the others at the entrance, his mate shaking his head with one hand covering his face, small snickers coming from him as his shoulders shook. Stiles shot up to the ledge and managed to get half-way on before his tail and belly stopped him. He felt Derek come up behind him, shoving him over the lip and onto the sand. 

“Mate.” He wiggling around so he could face the shark, receiving a kiss for his troubles and he shank into the still warm sand. The sun had just dipped below the horizon and he peaked over the edge, snuffling against his mates neck as he looked at the others. They were slowly moving about the cave, taking everything in and sniffing at the strangeness. “Sleep?” He smirked at the shark as Lydia tried to catch his eye. He pulled back and his mate settled next to him. They could deal with them in the morning.  
==================================================================  
Several months later he had his child, a little shark son that reminded him of the sun. He loved his child and was only slightly annoyed when his mate called him a guppy. Earlier that morning Scott and Derek decided to go on a patrol around the edge of the territory to look for the shark. Allison had gone into labor so Stiles offered to find her mate, not wanting his brother to miss it. Jackson had offered as well by Lydia told him he had to stay on help for when they had their own children. Stiles fled out of there from the glare she gave him, cradling his son in his arms.

It had only been a week but he loved carrying his son with him everywhere, barely letting anyone other than his mate hold him for him to do his business or to talk to the humans about what it was like to give birth and assuring them that he was fine. He never thought he could love a little ball of squish so much. It was a little to soon to tell, but his hair looked like it would be dark like his other fathers, but his scales were gold. Time would only tell if they would stay that way. 

He stopped suddenly, unsure of the feeling he had as he sniffed in vain. He let out a soft chirp, calling to his mate at the same time trying to see if there was anything around him. A heartbeat later he scented shark and spun around to see the massive black beast approaching from behind him. His arms tightened around his son until the guppy let out a wail but he couldn’t stop himself. His eyes flickered for any place he could hid his son safely before the Alpha attacked him. He sucked in a breath, flattening his fins down before he went to shoot down, toward the small cave he hid in before. 

The Alpha cut him off, catching his tail and flinging him toward open waters. Stiles hissed and slashed at him with his claws, trying to warn him off but then he froze as the Alpha approached, the sound dying in his throat when the Shark was a tail length away. The black beast turned at the last second, brushing past him so he spun around. His mind raced as he tried to figure out the change in attitude. He twisted around to watch as the beast turned and headed back, slowly passing but this time he bumped his nose against Stiles hips. He stared at his son blankly as he searched his memory for the name he needed. 

“Peter?” He stretched his hand out, running his hand over the sharks side as he passed again. The shark shuttered, coming back and stopping right in front of him. Stiles nibbled at his lip and looked at his son, the little golden shark and back up at the beastly Alpha. 

“Peter?” He repeated before thinking of what kept them sane. “I’m part of your pod, or what ever it is that sharks have. I know you lost most of your family, and that you couldn’t cope. But I’m Dereks mate, you remember your nephew? He’s my mate. This is our son. Your great nephew or something.” He squeaked in protest as the shark shifted closer, bumping against them but suddenly his eyes weren’t black anymore. They were blue and locked on the both of them. 

“Stiles?” Dereks voice came from behind him but he didn’t move. He was too terrified to take his eyes off the shark for a moment. He felt his mate rumble behind him, getting closer and a few heartbeats later he was being manhandled behind him, his mate shifted and gnashing his teeth. The sharks gazed at each other for what felt like forever before there was suddenly a more Mer looking shark in front of them. 

He had dark hair and looked like a mess, his body strained from the shift back and Derek rushed forward, grabbing him as he started to sink.

“Peter?” Derek hissed but Stiles couldn’t move. Scott came up behind just then, still not as fast as the shark at flat out speed but he instantly moved to his side. 

“Allisons giving birth” Stiles blurted out, staring at his friend as he gazed back, frozen. Derek reached back without looking and backhanded the Mer, causing him to shake his head and take off toward the cave without a word or chirp.

“Derek” Stiles hissed, a little taken back but the shark shrugged. 

“I froze too. Just returning the help.” The shark flashed a smirk and he knew the shark had waited for his chance to get back at him. Peter was floating next to them with the help of Derek, holding his head in his hands thought he was watching the exchange with pained eyes. 

“How long?” He croaked out and Derek cringed. 

“Long?” He pulled him toward the beach, turning around and waving Stiles off when he tried to follow. “Go help Allison.”

“Fine.” Stiles pointedly swam up to him, placing a kiss on his lips. The shark carefully ran his hand over their sons head, his claws held so far back that even Stiles had to snort at him. He turned and swam off, struggling with a quirk he had developed to steer a little off to the side. He still hadn’t learned yet how to compensate for it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's going to be one last chapter. Tell me what you think so far.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last time I mess with them. I promise. (Some one gave Stiles a flare)

Stiles stretched out in the sun, halfway out of the water as he used his tail to occasionally flick water over himself. Scotts and Allisons daughter, Leona, was currently sleeping next to him in the sand so he was making extra sure that she didn’t dry out. Lydia was sitting next to him, heavily pregnant and hissing when ever he splashed her too much and got her book wet. The humans taught them to read and she insisted on picking up different languages on top of reading ‘English’. Stiles knew how to read as well but instead lounged. He was still a little warn from being a parent but the waters turned warmer again and the days longer, making him excited. Erica was tanning a tail length away so she wouldn’t get wet. 

His own son, Micky, was currently being chased through the shallows in a game of tag, with his other father, Uncle Scott and extended Uncle Boyd chasing after him. There was a human called Isaac that was sitting on sand near them recording them all on a phone for later purposes to stop the hunters. Peter was watching from the rock Stiles used to use, still unable to trust being around humans, but never leaving the beach until the pod was safely back in the cave. 

The police had dealt with the Argents before he even gave birth, catching them as they tried to sneak into the facility run by Deaton to hack his tracker. He was reassured that they would never be able to hurt his family again. His father had taken over any meetings with the humans so he could spend all his time with his son and mate. The older Mer moving from pod to pod and even to other pods to spread the word that some humans were ready for contact again. 

His son was still golden in every way, from his scales to his skin except for the black mess of hair on his head that Stiles could never get completely brushed out. He acted like a shark sometimes, his eyes flashing gold and attacking randomly from under who ever happened to be the target while remaining silent. Mer were rarely silent hunters, clicking out directions as they worked together. 

“Don’t you dare.” He heard Erica squeal and peaked open an eye to see the large human carrying her into the water over one shoulder, laughing as she kicked and clawed. He learned that the Boyd came everyday to sit with Derek on the beach as they waited for him to heal the last few days, causing a companionship to sprout between them. He snorted and closed his eyes, flicking more water on them before dozing. 

There were other humans on the beach but they steered clear, knowing that the Mer weren’t to be approached if they had young and they didn’t know them. They would protect their young against any perceived threat, but they wouldn’t hurt human kids. 

As he thought about it, a young girl walked up, carrying a small bucket. He hummed low as she shuffled closer, suddenly dropping to her stomach so she was stretched out next to them, shifting closer until she could cuddle with Leona. The tiny Mer lifted her head for a heartbeat before curling around the human child, making him realize she was double cuddly as both parents could never help themselves when it came to cuddles. Stiles shrugged it off but turned to Ericas bag, shuffling around for something. 

When he admitting he was frightened about taking his guppy out of the water the blond human had shown him a small, strange device. She told him how to use it if anything happened and he dragged her bag closer, crossing his arms over it and resting his head on them. He flicked his tail, smiling softly as the human squealed softly in protest and Leona tried to use her tiny pink back fin to cover the human from the drops. After a while he looked back to see both the guppy and small human were both sleeping.

“Um, excuse me?” He jerked his head up and stared at the blond human standing several tail lengths away without even a towel. Several men and a hand full of women stared at her as they walked past and he figured she was meant to be beautiful. He didn’t think that she was, being all sharp angles and false smiles. Her eyes trained on Leona and he shifted, feeling off about her. 

“What?” He flicked his tail to cover them up and the human frowned. He clutched the small device in the purse, his back fin flaring out in warning as he shifted the device out. The women flashed a smile and he couldn’t help but feel like he had seen her before. 

“That’s my daughter.” She nodded to the small human and Stiles pressed his lips together so he didn’t hiss. This human had a flawless body, but her stomach was flat without a single mark. He looked her up and down before turning to the small human. She smelled off, much like Derek did when they first arrived in the tank. He pulled his tail back and nudged the human with the back of his hand, leaning over to pet her when she didn’t stir. 

“Lyds” He purposely flicked a wave of water over his companion as he tried to wake the child. 

“She had a long day, I’ll just take her.” The women was suddenly closer and he hissed in shock, her hands reaching for the child but grabbed the guppy. Leona jerk away from her, letting out a pained screech as she was lifted away from him. Stiles was faster as the women tried to run for it. He pulled out the device and squeezed the way Erica told him to. There was a pop and he dropped it, lunging forward as the women folded in half, her breath heaving. He caught Leona and dragged her over himself so Lydia could comfort her before he wrapped the human child in his arms protectively. 

“What’s the hell is your problem?” A man ran up, looking furious and Stiles hissed at him, snapping his teeth in warning as he hunched over the sick child. For a heartbeat he felt like the man was yelling at him but he realized he was grabbing the women, yanking her to her feet. There was a bright, burning tube on the ground and a large bruise forming over the women chest, and she let out a screech, attacking the man. Before she got free Boyd and Erica tackled her to the ground. Than it clicked. 

“Boyd! She’s an Argent!” He felt his mate trying to pull him back into the water, vaguely hearing Scott and Allison trying to console Leona and Peter shooing everyone back into the safety of the cave. “Erica?” He grabbed the burning tube and threw it at the nicer blond, causing her to scream when it burned her and she spun to glare at him. “She’s not waking up.” Stiles ducked his head to nuzzle against the child, trying to find a wound. His friend was at his side in a second, snatching up her purse and pulling out her phone. 

“It’ll be alright Stiles. You did wonderfully.” She murmured comfortably as Derek pulled himself closer, his own clawed hand trying to pet the warming child. Stiles leaned against his mate, trying to calm his heart only to have it start to pound.

“Micky?” He stared at his mate and he jerked his head to Jackson holding the shark guppy in the water, waiting patiently as Lydia drifted by a rock that Isaac was crouched on, talking soothingly to her as she waited for her mate. He looked back and whined as the child started to shiver in his arms. He was aware of the stranger holding the Argent while Erica was talking on the phone. Boyd walked up with a strange look on his face.

“Why do you say she’s an Argent? I thought we got them all.” Boyd asked, dropping to a knee on his other side and Stiles glared at him. 

“I remember her when I was attacked with my mother. It took a second because we’re both older, but I remember her voice.” He turned and breathed in his mates scent so he could hold his tempter. A man with bright red clothes was standing nearby, and Erica reached down for the child. “Hey” He nipped at her hands and lowered his head over the child.

“Stiles, sweety, this man needs to have a look at her so he can help her.” Erica nodded to the red man and Stiles frowned at her. 

“Then come over.” He snapped at the man and he did just that. Kicking up some sand as he fell to his knees by Erica, reaching forward and gently checking over the child. The more he searched the more confused he looked. 

“I don’t see anything physically wrong with her.” He muttered to himself and Stiles stared at him desperately. 

“Argent said that she was her daughter but it was a lie.” He leaned down but suddenly Derek pipped up. 

“She smells like almonds.” The shark pulled a face but the humans relaxed. 

“That means she used a sedative they used to use when they hunted, but since the effects took so long to appear then it is either a smaller dose or a modified substance. We can work with that.” The man snapped his fingers to bring his attention back to him. “I need to take her with me so I can start treating her. I promise I will come back and tell you what happened.” Stiles loosened his grip but he couldn’t help the fact that his eyes started to tear up as he lifted her away. “I will ask her real parents if she can come back to show you that she’s safe.” 

“Come on, Mate” He growled low when Derek finally managed to move him back to the water. Argent’s gaze followed them and Stiles wrapped his arms around his guppy, holding him close as the his son wrapped his arms around his neck, chittering a complaint. Jackson shot away from them, heading straight toward his mate. He pulled her away and Isaac jumped off the rock, swimming toward the shore with a wave toward them. Derek grabbed them both and pulled them toward the cave.  
==================================== Epilogue ======================================  
Several days later he met the child again, this time the red man brought her with a young women who tearfully thanked him for bringing attention to her child when she most needed it. The child had been taken earlier that day when they were further up the beach, the womens temporary mate not paying much attention to the child. 

He learned her name was Mira and she was still very shy around them all, choosing to hold hands or cuddle. Leona promptly beached herself when she saw the small human, letting out happy greeting chirps that were a little two high pitched. The adults were shocked but Stiles shifted to the side, letting the two guppys greet each other shyly before Mira offered her bucket to Leona. He easily recognized the cooing that came when humans saw something cute. 

After a few minutes Mira tried to show her how to build something out of sand and Micky came up, curious and nervous at the same time. His son rubbed his cheek on her shoulder before tucking himself against his side and watched them. The human mother sat near him as well, looking tired as the red man paced back and forth, standing guard on the beach while Derek swam to guard the water. Stiles watched him until Erica walked up, patting each young Mer on the head before she slumped to the ground, throwing her legs over his tail. 

“NOW, we are sure that we have all the Argents.” She sighed and he turned to see a very pale human mother staring at them.

“Family” He shrugged and went back to watching the guppies play, eventually nudging Micky so he joined them. He hoped he was using the right human word for pod. The only other time the human jumped was when Derek and Peter arrived, his mate tossing Erica off of him and tucking against his side while Peter pulled himself up on the other side of the guppies. 

“What happened to not liking humans and the beach?” He teased the shark, knowing that it secretly pleased the shark to be treated like everyone else. Derek let out a snort and threw his arm around him. 

“No one touches our guppies” Peter growled out, his face heating up as he pretended nothing was wrong. 

“Thank you.” The human piped up and Peter stared at her in shock before looking at Mira playing with the others. She let out an imitated chirp and fell back when both Micky and Leona started chittering in excitement. 

Stiles stiffened when the small human landed on Peter, letting out a small groan before she started to try to get to her feet. Peter blinked a few times before his face went impassive, shoving her back to her feet with one hand on her rear as he moved her off him, turning his back. Stiles didn’t miss the way he scanned the beach and hunched his shoulders in the same way Derek did when he was protective. 

“This is going to be fun” Stiles turned and pressed his face against his mates. He wondered how he was going to tell him that he wanted another guppy soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The End. Tell me what you thought about it.


End file.
